Former Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin is “alive and well” despite being thought to have died in a recent plane crash, a political analyst has claimed.

Dr Valery Solovey reckons that the warlord is hiding out on the Caribbean island of Margarita, part of Venezuela, despite Russian state media claiming that he died on August 23 near Moscow.

Solovey, who also claims that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s health is declining and that he is being filled in for by two doppelgangers, made his comments after Ukraine said it couldn’t verify the death of Prigozhin.

READ MORE: Sleuth 'proves' Putin is dead with key clues from moving mole to sagging chin

He also said sources told him the man formerly known as “Putin’s Chef” was informed of a bomb on the plane and avoided it.

“I promised to tell where [Yevgeny Prigozhin] is,” Solovey said.

“He is in Venezuela.

“As far as I know, he is on an island called Margarita.”

Solovoy – who some say is a conspiracy theorist – cited sources as saying Prigozhin was warned of the impending plane crash and given a route to avoid being on board.

"Yevgeny Prigozhin was warned about his assassination…that his plane would be destroyed,” he said.

“Yes, he was warned.”

He even claimed that Putin and Nikolai Patrushev, secretary of the Russian Security Council, developed a “trick”.

He continued: “They developed the ‘trick’ that we observed.

“When Wagner’s key commanders died [in the plane crash], Yevgeny Prigozhin remained alive and well.”

He claimed that Prigozhin may be allowed to return following Putin’s death to help settle the question of who will take power once he is gone.

“Up to 5,000 mercenaries might be under Prigozhin’s control,” he said.

“These fighters are supposed to be used as a death squad, to get rid of those who will try to resist [a new ruling] coalition [linked to Patrushev].”

He also claimed that Prigozhin would be able to keep some of his assets, but that the rest would go to Putin.

A spokesperson for Ukraine’s GUR military intelligence agency said this week: “We must operate with confirmed facts, we still need to wait.”

“I will simply focus on the fact that we can confirm the death of [Dmitry] Utkin and several other associates of Prigozhin.”

For the latest stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletter by clicking here.

Source: Read Full Article